Comparing Things Fall Apart 'And William Butler Yeats' The Second Coming

Upon an initial reading of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, it is easy to blame the demise of Okonkwo’s life and of the Umofia community on the imperialistic invasions of the white men. After all, Okonkwo seemed to be enjoying relative peace and happiness before then. He did have a few mishaps; one of them resulted in him being exiled for eight years. Nonetheless, he returned to his home town with high spirits and with prospects of increased success. However, everything has changed. The white men have brought with them a new religion and a new government. Okonkwo’s family falls apart. The men in his village lose their courage and valor; they do not offer any resistance to the white men. Consequently, Okonkwo kills

Chinua Achebe in his novel, Things Fall Apart, writes in a way that Erich Auerbach would describe as biblical style. Biblical style involves suspense, biblical allusions, the ambiguity of purpose, and gaps leading to interpretation. Achebe uses this biblical style to focus on the downfall of Okonkwo, the main character.

Okonkwo soon learns about this and confronts his son, Nwoye about his secret meetings, Okonkwo soon becomes enraged and disowns his son after hearing about his experience not before abusing him of course. This action causes an effect which ultimately leads to Okonkwo’s downfall. Okonkwo enraged by the spread of Christianity within his own village self-proclaims war on the “white man”. Okonkwo eventually was detained as a result of his actions towards the “white man”. After he was released from detainment Okonkwo killed a courier and began to truly understand he was a rebel without a cause as his fellow Tribesmen would not help him with his internal struggle. Okonkwo knowing, he would be caught and executed for his crimes, instead decided to ultimately end his own life by hanging himself. Okonkwo’s major downfall in the story was his inability to co-exist with the white man and began his own personal vendetta against the Christian missionaries. Throughout the story the main essential theme Achebe tried to relay to us would be the fact that even though individuals may be of different religions, skin color, and have different personalities there is a realization that

When comparing the novel “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe and William butler Yeats poem “The Second Coming”, at first there seem to be no similarities except for the phrase “things fall apart” which is used in both. But as one closely examinee the reasons why both authors use this sentence, one realizes that both of them try to show a great change, which, in the poem is related to reality, while in the novel is related to the story.

In Things Fall Apart Okonkwo and Mr. Keats when they try to teach free thinking. Nwoye and Keats students wanted to be their own man . They did not want to have to live up to the expectations of their fathers. Nwoye takes on the ways of Christianity in hope of a better life . The DPS wanting to be more creative and free thinking without restrictions. Okonkwo feels dishonored by Nwoye’s turn towards Christianity. Neil's father feels the same about his son wanting to be an artist not a Doctor. Nwoye’s move to Christianity shows the loss of Okonkwo’s power over his life as did the administration and parents in Dead Poet's Society . In The Second Coming the loss of control is symbolized by the line “the falcon does not hear the falconer ” . Where the falcon is the symbol of the lesser power and the falconer the symbol of the higher power just like the other two. The line says that after time passes and changes take place powers change . The last reflective idea between the poem, the movie and the book is the respect towards a superior force . The superior force is not always an object that one can feel or hold in his or her hand but it could be as simple as an idea. The superior force in The Second Coming was not the apocolypse but it was time. Time cannot be paused or turned back so whatever is done may never be changed . Which seems to apply in all three. Time does not allow the world to prepare for The Second Coming, So all hope is lost . The Superior force in Things Fall Apart is the spread of Christianity . Christianity creates Chaos in Umuofia . It makes all the people that were loyal to their ancestors forget about where they were from . The culture of the people in Umuofia was slowly put to extinction by the spread of Christianity. In Dead Poet's Society there is a stark contrast to the cyclical, “one size fits all” philosophy of life that

“Things fall apart; the center cannot hold” (“The Second Coming”). In the novel Things Fall Apart, the village’s belief system began to collapse. In “The Second Coming”, the narrator is witnessing an era coming to an end, and in “Ozymandias,” a statue of a tyrant falls apart, symbolizing the destruction of his legacy. There is a central theme shared amongst these three works. Things throughout history, good or bad, like religions, infamous leaders, or eras in history all inevitably come to an end.

The book “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe is a fictional look at the social and cultural life of an African tribe of the lower Niger River region. It depicts the every day life of the tribe and its members. It also shows the culture and customs of the tribe.

     Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe and The Second Coming by William Butler Yeats have been considered literary classics. Although there may be a gap between the times of publication, the themes and connotations are strikingly similar. In both works, there is a progression of chaos in time caused by change and eventually leads to an end.

Who are you? Who am I? These are some of the questions we ask each other when identifying culture. In the novel, Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, Okonkwo, the main protagonist faces many difficult changes in his ibo culture. Okonkwo is perceived as a strong, strict man who never likes to show emotion because he fears that it might make him seem weak. Throughout, the book it shows Okonkwo facing his fears and developing as a character. The cultural collision challenges Okonkwo’s identity, as a person because it identifies his persona and his beliefs, whereas if someone takes that from him, he fears his obligation in life will fall short once the white men take everything he worked hard to built.

Whenever that would transpire, Okonkwo would strive to never let that same mistake occur two times in his lifetime. In the novel Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo’s relationship with particular characters are affected as he struggles to honor his people and their ways.

This passage, found as a conclusion to a chapter in Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart, takes place after Okonkwo's return to Umuofia. A new English missionary has been set up in the village and has caused a great divide between the villagers. The main purpose of the section is to describe some of these events and changes that have taken place in Umuofia since Okonkwo's return. The passage is structured in three parts, each detailing about a different aspect. The first section focuses on Okonkwo's son Nwoye's conversion to Christianity and subsequent successes. The second part goes into detail about Okonkwo's arrival home to his clan and the change in the village. Finally, the last section includes Okonkwo's inner feelings and opinions

When describing society, the author uses allusion and states, “Anarchy is loosed upon the world.” Yeats explores the suffering of death that the human race is dealing with and a depiction of how war has done nothing but make life more difficult. Allusion is shown when the author illustrates there is so much death that, “the blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere.” The author is also claiming how the war would just create more war, and that helps weaken society. In stanza two, the narrator describes a man as, “A shape with a lion body and the head of a man.” This depiction is symbolic of mankind because men are so full of themselves that they believe they

Things Fall Apart is a novel written by Chinua Achebe a Nigerian novelist, poet professor and a critic born in Ogidi in 1930. Things Fall Apart was his first novel and won the Man Booker International Prize in 2007. Achebe’s novel is extremely popular in modern African Literature. Through illuminating author’s purpose, skillfully decided formal diction, and the substantial influence of secondary characters, Chinua Achebe has produced an award winning novel that enlightens the reader about authentic Nigerian history.

Chinua Achebe, a Nigerian novelist, once said,“When suffering knocks at your door and you say there is no seat for him, he tells you not to worry because he has brought his own stool.”. Written in 1958, Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe is about the pre-colonial Nigeria; moreover, the later introduction of Christian missionaries. Things Fall Apart is a tragedy that focuses on the life of the protagonist, Okonkwo, and his subsequent inability to adapt to the Christians. Tragedies usually share common traits such as a short time span, a tragic hero, catharsis, and the hero's downfall. Some common characteristics used in Things Fall Apart are the hero's tragic flaw, the hero's downfall, and catharsis.

“Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe ha1st s multiple themes in its story. These themes change throughout the story and help the reader to fully understand the meaning of the book. The book itself shows the life of an African native named Okonkwo and his family. Okonkwo was by no means a laid back man. He spent all his life trying to not be like his dad, and that made him turn into a very dark person that affected him both mentally and physically. On multiple occasions Okonkwo is given advice from the many people that he meets throughout his lifetime. Most of the time he decides to ignore this advice and go out and do his own thing however he saw fit which eventually led to his downfall. If Okonkwo maybe were to have taken the advice that he was given then he probably would have survived longer than what he did. That is a theme right there; the theme is listening to others could have its rewards.